Winona Volunteer Services Receives National Certification as a Service Enterprise Organization

Winona Volunteer Services is pleased to announce that we have been certified by Points of Light as a Service Enterprise! A Service Enterprise is an organization that fundamentally leverages volunteers and their skills throughout their organization to successfully deliver on its social mission.

Research conducted by the TCC Group, a national program and evaluation firm, found that organizations operating as Service Enterprises outperform peer organizations on all aspects of organizational effectiveness, and are more adaptable, sustainable and capable of scaling their work.

In the summer of 2016, Winona Volunteer Services completed an extensive assessment and over 20 hours of training and consulting by the Minnesota Association of Volunteer Administrators (MAVA). This was followed by extensive internal planning, reflection and action to better integrate volunteers in our day to day operations. By achieving this level of excellence and certification, Winona Volunteer Services strengthens its capacity to leverage the time and talent of volunteers and better meet our mission.

The Supplemental Food shelf, The Clothes Shop, Backpack Program and Home Delivered Meals would not exist in Winona without our dedicated volunteers. Volunteers also fill the roles of food rescue drivers, office clerks, committee members, Easter dinner kitchen helpers and servers, and grass cutter. In April, twelve volunteers agreed to auction their skill or talent to the highest bidder during our first ever Fashion Show Fundraiser raising $10,500 for WVS. From January through May 2017, WVS volunteers donated over 4,900 hours, a value of $121,000.

For more information regarding volunteer opportunities with our organization, please visit www.winonavs.org. For further information regarding the Service Enterprise Initiative, please contact Sara Wessling at MAVA, swessling@mavanetwork.org or Points of Light: http://www.pointsoflight.org/service-enterprise-initiative